Cortland, NY (10/04/03) - Sophomore quarterback JOHN DIGIROLAMO (Morris Plains, NJ/Parsippany Hills) threw two second-half touchdown passes to junior JASPER HANKINS (Union, NJ/Union) as Montclair State erased a 17-14 deficit and defeated SUNY Cortland, 28-17, in a New Jersey Athletic Conference matchup at the SUNY Cortland Stadium Complex.

DiGirolamo passed for 206 yards despite completing just 9-of-26 passes. After scrambling away from a blitz, he threw a 20-yard pass to a wide-open Hankins on 3rd-and-19 to give the Red Hawks (3-1, 1-0 NJAC) a 21-17 lead with nine minutes, 53 seconds left in the third quarter. His 61-yard touchdown pass to Hankins with 10:07 left in the game provided an insurance score. Hankins finished with four catches for 101 yards.

The first half was played primarily in heavy rain. The Red Dragons took a 3-0 lead with 1:13 left in the first quarter on a 29-yard field goal by junior Ryan DeCamp (Plattsburgh/Seton Catholic). Montclair, however, struck for two quick touchdowns early in the second quarter to grab a 14-3 lead. DiGirolamo's 1-yard sneak capped an 11-play, 59-yard drive with 12:45 left in the half. On Cortland's first play of the next series, sophomore defensive back PAUL GOLDEN (Seaside Park, NJ/Central Regional) picked off a pass by senior J.J. Tutwiler (Grand Island) in the left flat and raced 27 yards down the sideline for the touchdown.

Cortland (2-3, 1-2) got back into the game with a 14-play, 79-yard drive that took more than seven minutes off the clock. A 32-yard pass from Tutwiler to senior Neal Heaton Jr. (Bellport) moved the ball to the Montclair 40-yard line. The Red Dragons eventually scored on the drive when Tutwiler connected with senior Jon Frechette (Oswego) on a 4-yard, third-and-goal touchdown pass with 1:47 left before intermission.

A 46-yard kickoff return by freshman Anthony Morat (Rome/Rome Free Academy) to open the third quarter gave the Red Dragons the ball at the Montclair 49-yard line. Cortland covered the remaining distance in nine plays, with the final play a 5-yard run around left end by senior Mike Stepnick (Marilla/Iroquois) that gave the Red Dragons a 17-14 lead. Montclair, however, responded with a 73-yard kickoff return by junior Shaun Murray (Brick, NJ/Brick Memorial) to the Cortland 11-yard line. The Red Hawks were pushed back to the 20-yard line, mainly due to a pair of false start penalties, and faced 3rd-and-19 before DiGirolamo connected with Hankins for the goahead score.

Still holding on to a four-point lead, Montclair had the ball on its own 39-yard line with 10:54 left in the game. After a rush for no gain, DiGirolamo found Hankins open behind the Cortland secondary for a 61-yard touchdown and a 28-17 lead. Cortland's next drive was halted on an interception by Murray with 5:39 left. The Red Dragons got a final chance when they recovered a Montclair fumble at the Red Hawks' 35-yard line with 3:15 remaining. Cortland moved the ball to the 4-yard line before being stopped on downs with 1:05 left.

Tutwiler finished 18-of-32 passing for 171 yards and a touchdown. Frechette caught a career-high seven passes for 57 yards and Heaton grabbed six passes for 61 yards. Cortland outgained Montclair 354-277 in total offensive yardage and held the Red Hawks to 71 yards rushing on 39 carries. DiGirolamo ran for 57 yards on seven rushes for Montclair. Junior Steve Davis (Central Islip) ran for 68 yards for Cortland.

Senior linebacker RAY MEYER (Hasbrouck Heights, NJ) led Montclair's defense with 11 tackles, including two sacks. Freshman linebacker Matt Montpetit (Westhampton Beach/Westhampton) led Cortland with eight tackles.